Symphony sets multisensory performances

Music inspired by two distinct periods of art history will bookend the Amarillo Symphony’s latest concerts.

The program pairs Modest Mussorgsky’s masterpiece “Pictures at an Exhibition” with three other visually stimulating works, including the contemporary work, “Finding Rothko” by American composer Adam Schoenberg, which opens the program.

“Every piece on this concert has a strong connection to imagery,” said Susan White, executive director of the Amarillo Symphony. “It’s all about giving the listener a multisensory experience.”

The performances, aptly named “Pictures in Music,” are set at 8 p.m. Friday and Saturday at the Globe-News Center for the Performing Arts, 500 S. Buchanan St.

The Symphony’s music director and conductor, Jacomo Bairos, will conduct.

“Pictures at an Exhibition,” a multimovement work inspired by the artwork of Viktor Hartmann, concludes the program.

The Symphony will perform Maurice Ravel’s popular orchestration of “Pictures at an Exhibition,” which arranged the original work, written for 10 pianos, for a full orchestra.

“‘Pictures at an Exhibition’ is a great piece to showcase the talents of our orchestra, and it’s a work our audience loves to hear,” White said.

“It’s massive, it’s powerful, it’s emotional. It’s compelling music.”

The concert opens with Schoenberg’s 2006 piece, inspired by the late Mark Rothko’s iconic abstract artwork.